Stories of gruesome torture and inhumane treatment are no stranger to us Lebanese. And no i don’t mean the massacres by the Israeli army or the haunting tales of the Lebanese civil war. What i’m discussing here is a more contemporary issue, and one that a countless number of people have to deal with every day.

It’s the “issue” of “policemen” or “internal security” mercenaries in Lebanon. From traffic police to high ranking officers of the local police forces, just WHO do these people think they are? Do they know that they are here to protect and SERVE citizens? Do they know that their jobs are to educate people on laws when they’re broken and not use the incidents to start a show of supremacy fueled by a dire and severe self-awareness / inferiority?

No. YOU are not better than any of us.
YOU don’t have the right to mistreat young detainees for the silliest infractions.
YOU are not allowed to use force when absolutely not necessary.
YOU are not licensed to beat up and torture people for the simple facts that they are different from your perception of normality.
YOU are not welcomed to taunt and bully any citizen just for the fun of it.
YOU are not excused if you disrespect any citizen on the road or off it.
Wearing a uniform doesn’t make YOU above any law.

After all, WHO THE HELL do you think you are?

It’s such a shame what we all witness almost on a daily basis. The people “recruited” by our government to “enforce the law” are the same people who are shamelessly breaking every code of ethics for their “profession”. And for what? They do not even know any law. Do they even have an education? What are the criteria to become a member of the law enforcement in this country? Does it consist only of being purposeless in life and got nowhere else to go and nothing else to do?

I’ve experienced it first hand in many different occasions over the past years; the obsolete show of power and use of force over helpless, totally innocent and sometimes even clueless people! I even saw a helpless man call the 112 for help as a number of armed men attacked him, only to find police officers arriving and shaking hands and petting the attackers, and later arresting the helpless man despite him being the victim. And what we all hear about abuse, molestation and even rape in “certain stations” is more than enough to build rage in any human heart.

What can we do? Apparently nothing. The government have bigger “issues” to solve and the last thing on their minds is Human Rights. But i figured that shedding light on the subject, even if only in a modest way, will make me feel less helpless and hopeless!

It makes me so sad that, in a country that i love SO much and believe in SO much, people still have to endure such treatment and no punishment is ever implemented upon those who deserve it the most! If beating up a young under privileged boy like in the video above makes them feel like they are worth something in their sorry lives then it’s the only proof anyone needs to see them for the worthless pieces of shit that they really are.
Enough said. Speaking up never resolved any issue in this country anyway.